Maui resident demands help from Biden administration: 'We need support on the federal level'
Hawaii residents said that the federal government was not doing enough to help locals after devastating wildfires destroyed the town of Lahaina, Hawaii.
Hawaii residents said that the Biden administration was not doing enough to help locals after devastating wildfires destroyed the historic town of Lahaina, Hawaii.
At least 55 people have died after wildfires propelled by the winds of Hurricane Dora ripped through Maui this week, wiping out the historic town of Lahaina, Hawaii officials announced Thursday.
In a Friday interview with "CNN This Morning," Maui resident Cole Millington said that his friends and family need support from the federal government.
Maui resident Cole Millington said that his friends and family need support from the federal government. (CNN / Screenshot)
"I'm not getting what I need from the government," Millington said.
"We need support on the federal level," he continued. "We should have the Navy here. We should have the Coast Guard here. We should have helicopters here. It shouldn’t be me and my friends, in our 20, 30-year-old trucks grabbing supplies and driving them through a burning town to get there."
"We need real support, this is a severe disaster," he added.
Millington said that the response from the government was lacking and the "warning" that was issued was "useless."
"We have tsunami warnings that I think should have been utilized. I think this could have been handled so much better in so many ways. So many of us residents felt like we had absolutely no warning."
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Millington said that the response from the government was lacking and the "warning" that was issued was "useless." (Alan Dickar via AP)
Later on the CNN morning show, Allen Vu, another Hawaii resident, said that he heard about governors and President Joe Biden "talking about sending in help" but claimed that he was still not seeing much actual aid.
"As of now, we are seeing very little support from big organizations," Vu said. "We hear that there is Coast guards or National Guards[men] that’s assisting with organization in Lahaina. But at the same time, we are in contact with a lot of residents in Lahaina that are stuck up north," he explained, "who are out of power, out of water, out of gas. There’s no gas."
That has left a lot of the actual aid work to local civilians, Vu noted.
"So a lot of civilians, and a lot of people are trying to access into Lahaina, northbound or southbound to provide support," he explained.
This photo provided by County of Maui shows fire and smoke filling the sky from wildfires on the intersection at Hokiokio Place and Lahaina Bypass in Maui, Hawaii on Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2023. Wildfires in Hawaii fanned by strong winds burned multiple structures in areas including historic Lahaina town, forcing evacuations and closing schools in several communities Wednesday, and rescuers pulled a dozen people escaping smoke and flames from the ocean. (Zeke Kalua/County of Maui via AP)
Amid the devastation, the state announced that its emergency management system, which is the world's largest integrated outdoor all-hazard public safety warning system, showed no indications of triggering warning sirens when the natural disaster began on Tuesday.
FEMA has reportedly mobilized emergency supplies and the National Guard and Army have organized helicopters to join wildfire suppression and search and rescue efforts after approval from Biden. FEMA Administrator Dean Criswell also announced Thursday that there were serious efforts to get food and water to people in need.
"We've already released enough meals and water to support 5,000 people for five days from our logistics center that's there on the island," Criswell said.
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Fox News’ Elizabeth Pritchett contributed to this report.
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